


Like Always

by artemisia_HQ



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Confessions, Feelings Realization, First Kiss, Fluff, Getting Together, I just want my dumbass babies to be happy, M/M, Major Manga Spoilers, Post-Chapter 370, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Volleyball Dorks in Love, let's take a breather from all the angst geez
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-07
Updated: 2019-11-07
Packaged: 2021-01-24 22:55:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,113
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21346114
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/artemisia_HQ/pseuds/artemisia_HQ
Summary: The realization feels strange as it courses through his body. It’s all-consuming, dismantling every part of him and then builds him back up just as quick, feeling more complete and whole than he’s ever been. It’s strange, but it’s also welcome, as if he’s body has been waiting for him to acknowledge it, to accept it. It’s been there all along—the plain, simple truth that he’s terribly, disgustingly in love with KageyamaFreakingTobio.He’s in love with Kageyama and he wants him to know.While taking their last walk home together as teammates, Hinata discovers a startling revelation about himself and his highly confusing feelings for his long-time rival.
Relationships: Hinata Shouyou/Kageyama Tobio
Comments: 43
Kudos: 449





	Like Always

**Author's Note:**

> Chapter 370 left me in a whirlwind of emotions I can't even begin to elaborate. Just that I have at least ten headcanons from that chapter alone and it just won't leave me so here I am indulging and healing myself from all the angst Furudate-sensei is showering us in canon (╥﹏╥) 
> 
> Maybe I'll write something about the remaining headcanons. Just one more. Or two ☆⌒(ゝ。∂)
> 
> ***
> 
> It took me a week to finish this cause my mind was still floating in an ocean of equations and formulas after my exam and it sort-of killed my creative energy lol. But inspiration suddenly hits and two paragraphs became ten and before I knew it...5k words. What. But it's kagehina and that's how much power these two dorks hold over me lmao (//ω//)
> 
> ***
> 
> This is set after that 'See you later' scene on Chapter 370, so obviously, spoilers ahead.

Their last walk home together as teammates started out not that much different from all the others before it.

There’s that distinct smell of sakura from the trees that lined up Karasuno’s perimeter—sweet, but not the kind that itches Shouyou’s nose. The scrunch of the cement as they walk produces the same grinding sound, familiarly solid and firm under Shouyou’s shoes, the only thing out of the normal is the missing clicking sound of his bike.

It’s all so ordinary that if Shouyou closes his eyes, he could visualize that this is just one normal afternoon after practice, could feel the same satisfying mix of exhaustion and contentment seeping through his bone.

Shouyou continues his babbling about his preparations for Brazil, how he’s going to train here in Japan for a year before venturing to literally the other side of the globe. Kageyama just hums in response, eyes fixed straight ahead, as Shouyou talked and talked. Nevermind that he’s probably shared all of this information a hundred times before, but the excitement fizzing up his skin, he can almost feel himself vibrate with it, is too much to contain and he needs an outlet, and Kageyama is conveniently there to be just that. As all the other times before.

“And I’ve been reading this nutrition book and wow, food and science makes an interesting combo and it’s super cool, and did you know that—”

“‘That brown rice digests slower and gives you longer-lasting energy than white rice’,” Kageyama cuts off in a monotonous voice, quoting what Shouyou is about to say word by word. His hand comes up to lightly smack Shouyou at the back of his head. “I know, dumbass, you’ve told me that literally every day since you started reading that book.”

Shouyou sticks his tongue out as he massages his head. It doesn’t really hurt, and Kageyama’s violent tendencies have evolved to be more playful than aggressive over the years. But still, he makes a show of it and lets out an exaggerated huff. “That _hurt_, you idiot!”

Kageyama snorts, the kind that tells him he’s half-amused, half-annoyed. “No, it doesn’t. I hardly touched you.”

“I’m not a ball, Kageyama-kun, don’t spike me, or are you such a volleyball idiot you’ve mistaken heads for volleyballs now?”

“You’re really asking for the real thing, are you?” Kageyama growls as he lunges at Shouyou and Shouyou leaps back with a hearty laugh. Maybe Kageyama is faster this time, or maybe Shouyou allows himself to get caught for some unknown reasons, and he finds himself trapped between the crook of Kageyama’s arm, furiously ruffling and pulling at his hair but not hard enough to elicit actual pain.

“I’m sorry! I’m sorry! Stop! Stop—you’re gonna make me bald!” Shouyou shrieks in between a bout of giggles as he tugs at Kageyama’s gakuran sleeves. It’s weird, even as his mouth says stop, he really doesn’t want Kageyama to stop. It feels safe under Kageyama’s hold, warm and comfortable, and the sensation of Kageyama’s fingers lightly scratching his scalp makes his stomach twist and turn, but not the nervous kind. It’s light and giddy, all _guwaaah_ and _fuwaaaah_, and it occurs to him that this feeling isn’t exactly new.

Before he can think much about it, their roughhousing stops and Kageyama releases his hold on him with a grunt and a shove. Shouyou punches Kageyama’s arm as retaliation and the rest of their walk continues in silence. Maybe it’s just Shouyou being hyper-aware of everything, but they seem to be walking closer than they did previously and his hand brushes against Kageyama’s in more than one instance, and every time it does, it sends a wave of current up and down his spine, making him shiver, the flippity-flop thing going on in his stomach intensifying (it’s like his guts are doing a series of rolling thunder). Kageyama remains impassive, either he doesn’t notice or he doesn’t mind.

A sudden thought passes through his mind making Shouyou wonder how it would feel to hold Kageyama’s hands—his perfect, meticulously cared-of hands. He also wonders if they hold magic, crafting every toss into precision, and if that magic could somehow transfer if he makes contact with Kageyama’s hands. And maybe he’s just really, really, _really_ curious and wants to know how it would feel to slide his palm against Kageyama’s and clasps it into a tight hold. He wants to know if his admittedly smaller ones would fit exactly right—it looks like it would—and if those big, dependable hands are as safe and secure and warm as they look.

His hand twitches and he’s seconds away from reaching out to Kageyama’s slightly curled fist when Kageyama stops walking all of a sudden, startling Shouyou to a halt, and his hand comes up to clutch the strap of his bag instead.

What the heck was he doing? Did he just _try_ to hold Kageyama’s hand? Did he just have the thought of _wanting_ to hold Kageyama’s hand? Since when did he start to have these unwarranted yet honest thoughts?

The answer that comes to him is simultaneously surprising and expected.

“So,” Kageyama starts and Shouyou jolts a little at the sound of Kageyama’s sharp voice, pulling him out of his wallowing and he looks up at Kageyama. He’s fidgeting with his bag and his eyes keep darting around, like they’re purposely trying to avoid Shouyou’s direction. He opens his mouth, then abruptly closing it again and a tiny frown is forming on his face, like the way it does when he’s confused or thinking hard about something.

“I’m—I’m headed this way,” Kageyama says, but Shouyou gets this strange feeling that that really isn’t what Kageyama wants to say. And to make it even stranger, he actually thumbs at the direction of his house which is a stupid thing to do since Shouyou knows he’s going that way and Kageyama knows that __he__ knows. Shouyou could bring it up, poke fun at Kageyama for being stupid, but he’s feeling equally stupid too, so he nods and—as if it isn’t stressed enough—_stupidly_ answers with, “O-okay. I’m this way.”

None of them moved, just awkwardly shifting where they stand. Shouyou wants to say something, like there’s a hive of bees in his throat and he has to open his mouth to let it all out. He wants to say what he had just realized, that he’s been harboring these feelings of _want_ and _need_ to hold Kageyama’s hand for a long, long time and he wants to ask him why. Why is he feeling this way? Why is neither of them moving, as if they’re stretching what little time they have until they go on different paths? Why does the idea of them separating feels like a hundred volleyballs spiked right through his gut?

Why does his stomach tumble fitfully, his heart doing this sequence of crazy somersaults, like it always does when Kageyama’s around?

Why does he only notice this now?

Kageyama’s eyes finally lock on to Shouyou and he feels like he’s being drawn closer by those midnight blue eyes he always finds ridiculously, unfairly pretty. They regard him with glacial intensity but when the afternoon light hits Kageyama’s face and sweeps through his eyes, something shifts. The steely blue turns calm, like a velvet sky littered with stars pulling Shouyou in, coaxing him closer. He thinks he might get lost in them but as the northern star always points north, Kageyama’s own stars direct him to the right path.

And now Shouyou knows why.

The moment it hits him, everything clicks into place like pieces of a puzzle Shouyou had spent the last three years trying to solve.

He hears a cough and Kageyama peels his stare away from him and his Adam’s apple bops when he swallows before speaking. “Y-you should go. You’ll miss the bus. See you.” His gaze flickers to Shouyou one last time, raising one hand to give a small wave then quickly jamming it in his pants pocket before he turns his back and starts walking in the opposite direction.

Shouyou watches Kageyama’s retreating figure slowly getting smaller and smaller as he walks away.

Kageyama has always been that one stable force in his life, the one who’s always there, the one who believes in him, when all everyone does is give him doubt. The one who puts on his wings, helped him soar, reaching new heights he never could’ve done all on his own. And he’s eternally grateful for it, all the opportunities Kageyama had given him, but what he feels is beyond gratitude. He can’t really explain it—he only just realizes now _give him a break_—but he knows it goes deeper than that, that there are a million different reasons why he’s in love with Kageyama, but at the same time, he doesn’t know why.

He’s _in love_ with Kageyama.

The realization feels strange as it courses through his body. It’s all-consuming, dismantling every part of him and then builds him back up just as quick, feeling more complete and whole than he’s ever been. It’s strange, but it’s also welcome, as if he’s body has been waiting for him to acknowledge it, to accept it. It’s been there all along—the plain, simple truth that he’s terribly, disgustingly in love with Kageyama _Freaking_ Tobio.

He’s in love with Kageyama and he wants him to know.

Shouyou’s feet are already moving before he even notices it and he breaks into a run. He sees Kageyama ahead, uncharacteristically walking slower than usual, and Shouyou wills his legs to go faster.

“Kageyama!” His name rolls out of Shouyou’s tongue so fluidly, and even though he’d said his name a bazillion times before (nicknames included), this one feels different. It’s filled with longing and desperation.

Kageyama stops and turns around quickly. Shouyou catches up to him in record time and Kageyama’s brow quirks up in question.

“I forgot to give you something,” Shouyou says as soon as he regains normal breathing. His heart is pounding like a drum inside his ribcage but he knows it’s got nothing to do with the mad dash he just did. He huffs his cheeks, which is burning, and he’s positive he looks ridiculous with his hair disheveled by the wind, but he straightens up and stares squarely at those tantalizing blue eyes as he rips the second button off his gakuran, grabs Kageyama’s hand, opens his palms and drops the button.

Kageyama freezes, except for his eyes which goes comically wide like saucers as he stares at the button with short pieces of thread still attached to it like it’s something foreign and mysterious. He’s scowling at his palm, looking all shades of confused and Shouyou could almost hear the gears turning inside Kageyama’s head as he finally wakes up from his stupor and whips his head back to Shouyou, glare at the ready.

“Y-you, dumbass!” Kageyama chokes out. “Do you even know what this mea—”

“I love you.”

The words force their way out, impatient and eager to be finally let loose, waiting all this time to be spoken, living inside of him as it feeds and grows and now it wants nothing more than to be heard, so he says it again, inching closer to the person it’s meant to, “I love you.”

Two seconds passed. Three seconds. Fifteen seconds and Shouyou doesn’t even realize he’s holding his breath until his lungs get tight and he lets out a shaky exhale. Kageyama is blinking down at him, his mouth slightly parted and Shouyou’s gaze lingers on Kageyama’s lips far longer than necessary. When he looks up again, Kageyama is frowning at him, a crease forming across the bridge of his nose and Shouyou resists to urge to poke it _because holy shit since when did Kageyama looks so adorable while frowning?_

“You…love me?” Kageyama asks, voice shaky and unsure and so unlike Kageyama at all.

Embarrassment flares up Shouyou’s face belatedly and he looks down, scuffing the dirt and kicking small pebbles with his sneakers. “Y-yeah. I just…wanted you to know that.” The confidence he felt just mere minutes ago is quickly depleting and he swallows the lump on his throat. “You can throw the button or whatever.”

He briefly casts a glance at Kageyama. He’s frowning too hard that he almost looks angry, and the mortification slowly eating Shouyou alive is now coupled with a pressing heaviness on his chest.

Kageyama opens his mouth to say something but Shouyou beats him to it and he forces a beaming smile as he stumbles over his words. “So, uhm…yeah! I’ll go now! Don’t wanna miss the bus, bye!”

He quickly pivots, clutching the straps of his bag and for the second time in just a span of ten minutes, he bolts again.

It doesn’t take long before there’s a series of loud thuds on his tail, yelling “Hinata, you dumbass!” and Shouyou lets out a half-sob, half-scoff before sprinting at full speed. But Kageyama isn’t in top shape for nothing and Shouyou can hear his steps getting louder, quickly closing the gap between them. He risks a look over his shoulder and he jolts and wills himself to go faster at the sight of Kageyama’s murderous glare.

“Wait, you dumbass!”

“N-no! Stop chasing me!”

“Just fucking stop for a minute!”

“Never! You’re gonna murder me! I can’t die! How can I go to Brazil and train and beat you if I’m dead?!”

“Stop saying stupid things and wait!”

“No! Go home, Bakageyama!”

Shouyou is answered with a loud grunt and then a tight grip grabs hold of his wrist, yanking him backward, right into the solid wall that is Kageyama’s chest.

“I said fucking wait, you idiot!” Kageyama snaps over his loud breathing, panting just as hard as Shouyou, his chest rising and falling in time with his. He squirms under Kageyama’s hold but he had him in a vise-like grip but he still tries, whimpering as he wrestle his wrist free. Kageyama clicks his tongue and in one sweeping motion, turns Shouyou around to face him.

“I said wait, dumbass,” Kageyama says, voice unusually calm and soft, a stark contrast from all the aggressive shouting earlier. Shouyou can feel Kageyama’s eyes on him but he's still staring pointedly on the ground as he chews the inside of his cheeks. The grip on his wrist tightens and he’s about to make a plea again when the words forming in his mouth is swallowed by another mouth.

Kageyama’s lips are warm despite the cold, and it presses against him softly, tenderly, and just a little bit uncertain. A small noise escapes from Shouyou’s throat at the sudden contact and Kageyama hums in response, sounding almost desperate, and the hand gripping Shouyou’s wrist loosens and he slowly intertwines their fingers, squeezing, as if asking for permission or reassurance, or both. Another hand comes up to cradle Shouyou’s face, pulling him closer, and only then did his brain decides to catch on that Kageyama is kissing him.

Shouyou is still savoring the feeling, and admittedly still trying to wrap his mind around the fact that they’re kissing, when Kageyama suddenly pulls back and heaves a trembling sigh, lightly knocking their foreheads together. Dazed, Shouyou blinks up at him, but Kageyama’s eyes are scrunched tight as if he’s in pain and Shouyou’s heart crumples at the sight.

“Why?” Kageyama whispers over his lips and tentatively opens his eyes, misty but focused, wandering all over Shouyou’s face as his thumb gently caresses his cheeks. “Why today?”

“Kage—”

Seems like Kageyama doesn’t want Shouyou to finish any of his sentences as he captures his lips again, a bit off-center, but still enough to make Shouyou light-headed. When they part, Kageyama lets out a silvery, “Stupid dumbass,” before diving right back, lips moving more fervently, the hand on Shouyou’s cheek making it’s way on the back of his head, tilting him closer and closer until Shouyou is flushed up and against Kageyama and his own hand comes up to grip at Kageyama’s bicep for support, their entwined hands still pressed tight.

Shouyou’s stomach twists then loosens, releasing a mass of intense euphoria and it explodes inside of him as their kiss deepens. At the back of his mind, he’s vaguely aware that they’re in the middle of a road and he’s pretty sure a bike just zoomed past by them, but he doesn’t care in the slightest. Shouyou kisses Kageyama back with the same ardency, like this is yet another competition but Shouyou already feels like he’s won. He wants to do this forever, to stay in this moment, but a sudden, awful thought wiggle through the haziness of his mind making him pull away from those soft lips when he so desperately wants to stay.

“W-wait, wait a sec,” Shouyou says breathlessly, already missing the tingle of Kageyama’s lips, which are still puckered and it takes all of Shouyou’s willpower not to smush their mouths back again. He stammers out, “I—I’m super confused right now. Does this mean you…l-love me too?”

Kageyama’s nebulous expression immediately dissipates, hands releasing its hold from the back of his head and from their slotted fingers and stares down at Shouyou incredulously.

“What? Why do you think I kissed you, you idiot!” Kageyama bellows, sounding equally confused and annoyed.

“I—I don’t know!” Shouyou shrieks then points an accusatory finger at Kageyama, right up his nose. “You’re a weirdo so—I don’t know!”

“You’re the weirdo!” Kageyama snaps back as he slaps Shouyou’s hand away. “What do you think a kiss after a confession means?”

“M-maybe you just like kissing people! And that was my first kiss, you jerk!”

“That was mine too, you moron!”

“See! You—_wait_…really?” Shouyou’s heart skips at the realization, relief blooming in his chest, and he takes a step closer and stares up at Kageyama, hopeful and optimistic. “So that was—y-you actually love me back?”

A pinkish tinge starts to blossom across Kageyama’s cheeks but his face remains petulant. “No shit, dumbass.”

“Since when?”

“I-I don’t know. I just realized today.”

“Oh. M-me too, I guess.”

Silence falls between them and it’s suddenly hard to look at Kageyama but Shouyou’s lips are starting to tug upwards, his body unable to control this _buwaaah_ feeling swarming inside him.

“S-so,” Shouyou starts, voice feeble and shaky so he clears his throat and tries again, “we l-love each other.”

“Hmm.”

Shouyou hesitantly looks up at Kageyama and blue eyes meet his brown ones and that somehow gives him the courage to move closer, stepping into Kageyama’s space and he feels like he belongs there. He holds his gaze and licks his lips. “Like—like kissing and stuff.”

“Obviously.” Kageyama sounded a little bit annoyed but a small smile is playing on his mouth, the corners of his lips twitching and it’s so damn adorable and Shouyou gives in to his instinct and flings himself at Kageyama, throwing them both off balance and they roll down the side of the road. They’re a pair of tangled shouting limbs, bags hitting their faces painfully and they must’ve look ridiculous and stupid and Shouyou laughs and laughs as Kageyama groans and yells expletives.

They finally come to a stop and Shouyou ended up sprawled across Kageyama’s chest, still giggling uncontrollably. Shouyou can hear and feel Kageyama’s erratic heartbeat, loud and fast and in complete synchrony with his.

“Stupid Kageyama,” Shouyou finally manages to let out, a few giggles still slipping past his lips. He weakly punches Kageyama’s chest with each word he breathes out. “Stupid stupid _stupid_ Kageyama.”

Kageyama moves below him and with a grunt of, “Get off me, you’re heavy,” he pushes Shouyou off of him, and he rolls sideways on the grass as Kageyama sits upright. Shouyou hastily corrects himself, a retort half-formed in his tongue but it dissolves when he takes in the sight of Kageyama, ears and cheeks rosy like the sakura petals that rains down on them, refusing to meet Shouyou’s stare.

Unbelievable. Here is Kageyama Tobio, cool, calm and collected, Kageyama Tobio, looking all hundred ways shy and bashful with his blushing cheeks and scrunched up nose and pouty lips. He looks so endearing and unexpectedly _cute_ and Shouyou knows no one in the entire universe had ever seen Kageyama in such a state, except him. A _Kageyama-look_ only Shouyou gets to see and the thought that he may also be the reason for it causes a wobbly smile to form on his lips and he scoots closer, even as his cheeks burn with its own shade of red.

“Hey,” he whispers, afraid of breaking this tender aura surrounding them. “Look at me.”

Kageyama takes a moment before he hesitantly lifts his face. They stare into each other’s eyes, a million questions swimming and Shouyou fishes out the one that stands out the most. “Why did you just realize now?”

Kageyama snorts, but his tone is unusually soft as he says, “Speak for yourself, dumbass.”

Shouyou laughs at that and his hands rise up to hold Kageyama’s face between his palms and his chest fills with warmth when Kageyama leans on it. “Hehe. We’re both stupid then.”

He kisses Kageyama this time, a small peck at first, but when Kageyama tugs him by the collar, their lips mold over the other in unison. All of his other thoughts dissipates, submitting into the warmth and softness of Kageyama’s chapped lips moving carefully, gently against him, coalescing this contact between them into a fine point, leaving only one single thought in his mind: just how much he wanted this, whether he’s aware of it or not, and now that he’s gotten a taste of it—and it tastes so, _so_ sweet—he’s past the point of no return.

They part for a moment, just enough for Kageyama to pull him closer, always so impatient, but Shouyou doesn’t need any more urging as he straddles Kageyama’s lap, arms wind around his neck, and kisses him again. And again. And again, continuously giving himself up to this ascending feeling and for the first time in his life, he’s not afraid to fall. Kageyama’s arms circle his waist to steady him, and presses more eagerly, and Shouyou sure he’s making these tiny, desperate noises that Kageyama responds to with a low, wanton sound of his own, sparking every nerve in Shouyou’s body to life.

“What…does this all mean?” Shouyou murmurs as soon as they break apart, once again searching through the depths of those deep blue eyes. He’s asking more for Kageyama’s sake than himself because he knows he wants this to mean something. For them to mean more than what they already have.

Kageyama sighs, ragged. “I don’t know.” He looks away and frowns. “What’s the point anyway. You’re leaving.”

The way he says it, as if all hope has been lost, sinks Shouyou’s heart like an anvil has been tied to it. Very slowly, he draws Kageyama’s face back to him. He looks…dejected and Shouyou’s heart drops even further and he wants nothing more than to erase that look on Kageyama’s face.

“I-I need too,” Shouyou says, like he’s convincing Kageyama and himself. “It’s the only way I can catch up to you. To beat you.”

Kageyama just nods and the pained look on his face lessens a little but it’s still there. Shouyou continues, putting a bit more cheer to his voice, “We can call each other. And that thing Yachi does with her dad.”

A gleam of something hopeful passes through Kageyama’s eyes and Shouyou’s spirits pick up. “You mean the video thing?”

“Yeah! And there’s Line, too, other than the group chat we have.”

Kageyama goes silent again, the furrow in his brow deepening. Shouyou inches closer, which is kind of pointless since he’s still on Kageyama’s lap and they’re practically sharing the same space, but he wants to get this across on the closest distance as possible.

He takes Kageyama’s hands that rest on his hips and threads their fingers together. They’ve held hands earlier when Kageyama first kissed him but it’s only now that he gets to appreciate it. They’re warm, like he expects, long fingers with nails trimmed perfectly and they fold over Shouyou’s perfectly as well. He takes a slow, deep breath and tries to calm the wild trashing of his heart as he lets himself be vulnerable, pouring out the feelings flooding his chest.

“I just—really, really love you a lot and I don’t think it would _woooosh_ go away just because we can’t see each other. I mean, I didn’t even realize it until today and my heart is getting all _guwaaaah_ and _baboom_ and…and I think I’ve been feeling this way for a long time now.” The flush on his cheeks inflames but he steels himself with a smile. “I’m not even aware but I still love you, anyway. How much more now that I know it and recognize it and be reminded that you feel the same?”

One long agonizing minute passed and still no response.

“And I won’t be leaving until next year and I can visit you at Tokyo, so…” he trails off with a shrug, briefly casting his eyes down. When he looks up, Kageyama eyes him with intensity, narrowed and glaring, and a jolt runs through Shouyou’s body and he leans back, quickly unclasping his hands to wave them in front, making weird gestures as he fumbles through his words. “But if it annoys you and distracts you then I guess—”

“It won’t,” Kageyama interjects, startling Shouyou a little. The sharp look in Kageyama’s eyes dwindles, reverting back to that calm deep blue as he takes Shouyou’s hands again. “It won’t distract me. Hinata, I—I’m the same. I want—” he pauses and drops his gaze but the red blossoming across his face doesn’t go unnoticed.

“Want…?” Shouyou coaxes, a grin forming on his lips.

“That. I want…what you’re suggesting.” Kageyama answers, eyes sweeping up and holding Shouyou’s gaze, giving their joined hands a little squeeze.

“You mean…date?”

Kageyama nods.

“You do?” Shouyou presses and he’s grinning like a maniac now his face might split.

The red on Kageyama’s face darkens as he nods again.

Shouyou releases their fingers to fling himself at Kageyama, wrapping his arms around his broad shoulders. “Uwaaaaah! _Kageyamaaaaaaa!_”

“Oi—!”

“I promise I’ll call every day!” Shouyou exclaims, looking up at wide, stunned eyes. “And chat! And send you lots of milk pictures!”

“What does milk have to do with anything?” Kageyama asks in genuine confusion, his brow arching up.

“You like it!” Shouyou says as if it’s the most obvious thing in the world. “I’ll send you pictures of the things you like! Milk and—and small animals! And volleyball of course!”

Kageyama blinks at him then juts his lower lip and mumbles, “You can just send a picture of yourself, dumbass.”

Shouyou’s chest feels like it’s bursting. “Aww that’s _so_ sweet, Kageya—_ah_!”

The words are literally knock off of him as Kageyama tackles him to the ground and he hovers above Shouyou, casting his shadow all over him as the sun shines on his back. His gaze dances all over Shouyou’s face then he leans forward and kisses him for the millionth time that afternoon but Shouyou’s not one to complain, not when Kageyama’s kisses taste like velvet and probably the sweetest, most incredible thing in the world. His senses are lost to their kiss but he feels Kageyama’s hand tangling with his own, slipping something small and solid in his palms.

When they finally pull away, Shouyou brings his hand to his face and opens it to find a button exactly like the one he gave Kageyama. For a moment, his stomach drops, a dreadful thought worming in his mind, but then he notices Kageyama’s gakuran, collar loose and open, the second button missing. His vision is a bit blurry when he looks up again.

“Come back to me, you hear me?” Kageyama says, soft and low, but so full of conviction, that it’s not even a question or a request, but a demand. His free hand thumbs the corner of Shouyou’s eyes, gently wiping away the small tears pricking, then moves up to shift through Shouyou’s hair, brushing them away from his forehead, lightly twisting a lock of curls. “Come back to me.”

Shouyou laughs. “What do you think __‘_see you later_’__ means, Kageyama-kun? Of course, I would. I promised didn’t I?”

Kageyama kisses him again as a reply and he doesn’t know how long they’ve stayed there but the sun is already starting to set when they’re back on the road (Kageyama insists he walks Shouyou to the bus stop and he can’t really refuse, can he?). Shouyou swings their interlaced fingers between them as they walk, his other hand curled inside his pocket, playing with the button. He’s happy, ecstatic even, and he knows Kageyama is too, judging by the dopey grin on his lips and the occasional squeezes on their joined hands.

“Let’s go out tomorrow,” Kageyama says suddenly, and he looks down at Shouyou the same time he draws his gaze up.

“Go where?”

“Anywhere you like.”

Shouyou blinks up at Kageyama, whose face is slowly becoming beet red from the neck up, and Shouyou’s own face flushes at the realization. “Are you…are you asking me out on a date?”

At that, Kageyama turns his head away and hides his face on his palms, but he gives the slightest nod and Shouyou smiles so wide his cheeks hurt a little. “Yes! Let’s go! On a date! Anywhere, anywhere is fine!”

He presses close to Kageyama as he pulsates with excitement, and with an irritated, almost whiny groan—but still with that adorable blush coloring his face—Kageyama shoves him away and he runs off without warning. It takes a few seconds for Shouyou to recover, and he yells, “That’s a false headstart!” as he follows.

Kageyama looks over his shoulders and it’s a miracle Shouyou hasn’t tripped all over his feet by the bright, _absolutely beautiful_ smile directed at him. For him.

“Hurry up!”

He doesn’t need to be told twice; he doesn’t need any urging at all, because he’s pretty damn sure that no matter how many headstarts Kageyama takes, he’ll always follow. That no matter how much distance there is between them, how many different separate paths they have to take, they’ll always end up on the same orbit.

Like they always do.

**Author's Note:**

> This probably has the most kisses in any fic I've ever written lmao (//ω//)
> 
> ***
> 
> I love getting feedbacks, and they motivate me tremendously, so drop them in the comments! Kudos are also appreciated :) Thank you for reading! ♥️
> 
> scream about kagehina or hq in general with me on my [twitter](https://twitter.com/artemisia_hq?s=09) or [tumblr](https://artemisia--hq.tumblr.com)
> 
> i have more self-indulgent kagehinas in a mixed bag of fluff, smut, and everything in between [here](https://archiveofourown.org/users/artemisia_HQ/works)


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